I always find that the most difficult part of a painting is the details. How much do I add,  and where do I add to be most effective? If the pattern is good, the details should just enhance the pattern.

Here you can see the light, middle and dark pattern. I can easily add darker values and some lighter values by lifting. I mentioned lifting in my previous blog. Adding details to any of the areas of value should not change the shape or size of that area. 

If I add details in the dark areas, I want to keep them as a dark. And the same for the lights and middle values. If I don't do that then it will change that area and change the pattern.
If I find at this stage of the painting that the pattern could be improved, then I can make that adjustment by changing the pattern with details.

Most of the details were added to the center of interest with weeds, and fallen branches carried downstream. I added more dark values to the middle ground snow to give it more form, and finally adjusted some of the edges to the rocks and water in the foreground. As I mention in previous blogs, remember that you are finished when you are sure that there is nothing left to be adjusted. This painting is finished.

The last large area to be painted is the snow in the middle and background.

By adding more rocks around the fallen log, I can bring more interest to that area. While it was wet, I used a sharp blade to scratch some grasses to  add even more detail. 

The first thing that the viewer sees in any painting is the pattern. The areas of light, middle and dark values are the key to making any painting successful.
The best pattern will incorporate a variety of sizes and shapes. The pattern of each of the values should also connect visually or physically.

I chose a middle value for the rocks. With the pattern in mind, I wanted the rocks to connect with the values in both the water and the ice in the foreground. The shapes of the pattern also create movement. The light snow is a triangular shape that is pointing from the upper left corner down to the foreground to connect with the lights in the center of interest.

Happy with the pattern, all that is left is deciding how much and where to put any details.

In this step, I concentrated on the foreground. Painting up to the edge that I left in the previous step creates some hard edges where the water meets the snow.

Newly fallen snow will have soft edges. Ice generally has harder edges. I will leave these hard edges until I paint the "softer" snow in the middle and background, then adjust as needed. 

I want the water to be dark, but not as dark as the darks in the background. I made the color more intense to make the water appear to come forward, by using a combination of Phthalocyanine Blue and Manganese Blue. Manganese Blue is the coolest blue.

Ice traps the cool light inside its crystalline structure.  If you've seen icebergs in person, you will notice how blue they are.
​The balancing act here is to get the "coldness" of the ice, yet also to make this area come forward. The intensity of color should solve that problem.

​This step establishes the basic pattern of the light, middle and dark areas of value. Getting that correct is the key to a successful painting.

The next step will concentrate on the still large light area of the snow.

This area will be the center of interest, so I concentrated my efforts on separating the rocks, snow in light, the snow in shadow, and the fallen trees.

​I talked about edges in my last blog and have the same situation in this painting. The hard edge that I left at the bottom of this section could present a problem. However, because most of that edge will be defined by a much darker value in the next wash, it won't be an issue.

There are still large areas of light or white at this stage. I have to be aware that they need to be adjusted in color and value as I paint them.
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Remember: all color and value is affected by the adjacent color and value.

Although this is a relatively small area of the painting, because it is the center of interest, controlling the colors and values is critical.

The separation of the shadow side of an object and the cast shadow from that object is critical to the form.
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There is always a value difference between the shadow of an object and the shadow that it casts. Also the cast shadow is darkest where it begins and gets lighter as it moves away from the object.

I like to keep the drawing simple. That leaves me room to be more creative as I apply each wash. "Drawing" with the brush is much more satisfying.

I will dominate each of my paintings with a few colors, but will add all of the other colors on my palette. My palette of colors is noted on my previous blog.

For this painting I used Quinacradone Gold, Pthalocyanine Blue, Manganesse Blue and Brown Madder. The choice of colors is dependent on my plan for the painting. I wanted very intense colors because of the bright warm light in the photo reference. I also wanted pigments that would "separate" when mixed to give me more textures in the rocks and fallen tree trunks.
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I always tell my students to read the label on the back of each tube of paint so that they know what is in the paint. Check the letters. The "P" is for pigment and the second letter is the color. PO is pigment orange, PY is pigment yellow. The number is supposed to be an indication of a particular color. For instance, I used the Daniel Smith brand of Quinacradone Gold which is PO48-Nickel Azo Yellow, as opposed to American Journey brand which is PR206–Quinacradone Burnt Orange plus PY42 Yellow Ochre (two colors mixed together in one tube).

Don't assume that colors are the same from brand to brand just because they have the same name or letter designation. http://www.handprint.com/HP/WCL/water.html
​is an excellent resource.

In transparent watercolor the procedure is always the same:

1. paint light to dark
2. paint large to small
3. paint background to foreground
4. paint intense to grayed
   
   

The large, light mass of the snow was painted with just Quinacradone Gold. While still wet, I continued to the upper right with some cooler Manganese Blue.  After waiting a short period of time (about five minutes) I painted the very dark upper right side of the composition. Why did I wait? So that I could create a soft edge. (Remember, drying time depends on the type of paper, and the temperature and humidity of your current environment).

​Next was the shadow side of the fallen tree and some of the rocks to the right.

​As a student I was taught to paint light to dark and for several years I painted just the light parts of the whole painting first, then the middle values, etc. I have since learned that the concept is to paint the lightest part of the lights and the lightest parts of the middle values and the lightest parts of the darks. Therefore the darks that I have painted in this first wash are not my darkest darks.

I want to create more interest in the foreground area, so I've stopped here, leaving some hard edges.
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The second step will deal mostly with that area.

Good morning,
We are still in isolation mode here in Illinois. In my last blog I shared my process of a step-by-step painting that I thought would be helpful to you painters during this time. 

Each painting is unique, so sometimes calls for a unique approach. If you followed along, you were aware that I worked in sections, rather than blocking in the entire piece–a deviation from my usual process. 

The color and value you apply to an area in a painting is influenced by the color and value adjacent to that area. Therefore, getting rid of the "white" of the paper was the first priority. In the last painting, I had to know how each section would change when I painted the next section.

In this next painting, I will return to my more traditional block-in method, leaving some white space on the first wash, but blocking in major areas of the painting.

First, thanks to Dale and Marilee Popovich for the photograph–my inspiration for this painting.

What is it about a photograph that wants you to paint it? Is it the subject, the color, contrast, or details? I chose this photo to paint because of the contrast of the lights and darks, and the temperature change of warm and cool.
No photograph is perfect in composition. So I want to make some adjustments. Remember, the elements of composition are, balance, unity, movement, proportion and emphasis-B.U.M.P.E.
​I did several sketches to create both a center of interest and the eye-movement that will carry the viewer throughout the painting. 

"On a Winters Day" was accepted into the 2020 Illinois Watercolor Society's National exhibit.
I didn't change the composition much. Just simplifying some of the details and adding some darker rocks was all that was needed. Some photographic references need more changing than others.

I will break down the steps in my next blog. See you at the easel!

Now that all of the major areas of the painting are completed, minor alterations can be made, adjusting contrast, intensity, color and detail.

First I will verify that the large areas of light, middle and dark values are correct. Then make any adjustments within each area.  If an area in general is a middle value, then all of the adjustments should be middle values. If I add a dark value to that area in may destroy its identity as a middle value. Pattern is key to making a painting work.

From there I made literally dozens of minor adjustments to finish this painting. I added details where I want to bring the viewer into the painting, suggesting more movement. To bring the viewer to the center of interest, I added some reflections in the water and did some scratching for highlights. Then I continued from the center of interest to the right, and back to the foreground to complete the painting.

The Finished Painting

I'm often asked "how do you know when the painting is finished?" My best answer is that when you are at the final stage of a painting and you see something that is wrong, then correct it if possible. if you see something that you think is wrong, leave it alone. You are done!

​This painting is completed. If this breakdown of my process was helpful to you, let me know and I will do another painting using this format. Thank you for following along!

As mentioned earlier, the success or failure of a painting happens before you pick up the brush. However, too much planning can hinder creativity.

Science indicates that the two hemispheres of the brain function differently. The left side is dominant in logic, which is important in the planning of a painting. The right side is dominant in creativity. Artists need to utilize both sides to make a painting work.

First, I had to do something with the white space on the right. I left that white because it creates movement that brings the viewer back to the foreground area. With the completion of the "oops" section, I now know what shapes to create to achieve that.

The original plan was to use the "path" starting from the lower left leading to the center of interest, as shown in the top photo. That path was going to be a flat area of grass. More of the same color would give me color harmony but not much variety.
So, instead of a grassy area, I decided to make it water. 
​There is some blue in the background, so it would still keep with the color harmony I had planned, but would add something a bit more interesting.

Methodical planning is the key to success, but for me, unintended departures along the way is the fun part of painting.

​The next step will be the final step.

As I move into the foreground, I need more contrast of value, more intensity and a warmer temperature to give depth to the painting. I decided to use some salt, a common technique used in watercolor painting to create more texture. 

Adding salt while the paint is wet will absorb the water and pigment, leaving a "blossom". You can use regular table salt for small "blossoms" or as I did in this painting, Kosher salt which makes larger "blossoms".

 The top image shows the section while it is still wet. Below is the section when dry.
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My goal was to get more texture and more contrast and more intensity. However, too much salt soaked up all of the color! Now I have a problem to solve.

To achieve my goal within this section,  all I had to do was add a little more form to the shapes created. But because I lost most of the intensity, I will have to repaint this area. The problem is the salt, which not only absorbs the water but also absorbs the sizing in the paper. As a consequence, putting another layer over that area results in a loss of transparency. The paint will soak into the paper and the underlying paint layer. So, in this case, I had to switch to staining pigments, phthalo green and olive green.

Another word of caution about the use of salt. Do not try to remove the salt before it is absolutely dry. The still-wet salt will smear and ruin the texture. Salt is very corrosive and in time will destroy the paper. You will want to remove all traces of the salt. You also want to clean your brushes thoroughly for the same reason.

​On to the next step!

This segment focuses on the middle ground of the painting, where the colors are more intense, warmer and the contrast of values is greater.

Unlike the photo reference, I want this area to be both flat and hilly with some small trees and shrubs. My brush strokes follow the form to show that.

It is important to consider the elements of form and movement. Visual movement in a painting can be created with line, edges, change of value and perspective. First, I want to move the viewer to the center of interest and then to the rest of the composition while preventing the viewer from leaving the painting. The path I am creating starts from the bottom and leads the viewer to the buildings. The darker tree values in the background attract the viewer to that area and then, as mentioned in a previous step, to the right side of the painting by use of value change.

​I left some unpainted (white spaces) on the right which I will build on to create movement to come back to where I started. 

After the middle ground was painted, I was able to paint the structures with more form and detail. The roofs that are in shadow were painted with a cooler color. The roofs in the light were painted with a warmer color. Light sides of the structures were painted with the warmest red on my palette, which is Cadmium Red Scarlet, and the shadow sides were painted with a cooler and grayer color, and the cast shadows were painted with a cooler and grayer color of the ground.